Next Course Date: October 26-27, 2022 

Location: Potomac Institute Ballston Headquarters (Arlington, VA)

Tuition: $2,500

The recently passed, CHIPS for America Act is one of the largest U.S. government investments in domestic semiconductor capabilities in a generation.  This bill highlights the importance of the microelectronics supply chain security and resilience. This is a serious global challenge due to limited access to essential materials and facilities that can manufacture these essential technologies.  The key motivations for implementation of this act were COVID-induced shortages from lowered supplies due to work force and supply chain availability.  This, coupled with U.S. concerns on economic competition with China, helped galvanize U.S. focus on the need for U.S. based production of critical technologies like semiconductors. 
 
The CHIPS for America Act is a complex piece of legislation with many parts.  The semiconductor section alone amounts to $52 billion of USG investments in domestic semiconductor capabilities.  There are multiple areas addressed by the legislation, including incentives for production and establishment of new research and development enterprises.  Additionally, the legislation contains multiple types of execution vehicles, including grants and tax incentives.  What do these large investments really mean?  How will they be executed to benefit U.S. capabilities?  And what do the details of CHIPS really mean for those that want to invest? 
 
Find the answers to all this and more in Potomac Institute for Policy Studies’ new executive education course – CHIPS: The Real Deal and What it Means for US 
 
This 2-day course, hosted at the Institute, will explore the recent groundbreaking CHIPS legislation.  It will review motivations for this investment as well as the various sections in the bill.  The class will also cover the execution options available and how this legislation can best impact the interests of the U.S. economy and national security. 
 
The course will be led by an esteemed set of instructors with considerable experience in this field.  Our instructors will help participants understand the big picture of the CHIPS Act that is intended to impact U.S. economics and national security.  They will present a briefing followed by a dialogue between the participants and instructor to elicit critical understanding of the concepts and issues.  The course will culminate in an interactive exercise where participants will create their own recommendations for proposed CHIPS execution led by experienced coaches. 
 
The Potomac Institute for Policy Studies invites early to mid-career professionals with an interest in understanding the complexities and nuances of the recently passed CHIPS bill and its potential impact on the U.S. economy and national security.  This course is perfect for industry, government, and academic professionals alike with a shared goal of identifying and addressing the challenges the U.S. faces in the microelectronics realm. 

Session Descriptions

Motivation for USG Investment: Why Should the Government Invest? 

The government has been given $52 billion for stimulating domestic semiconductor capabilities with the passing of the CHIPS Act. This session will focus on why the U.S. Government should make a large investment in this area right now. We will also consider the pressing economic and national security reasons motivating such a significant investment. 
 
Speaker: Hon. Alan Shaffer

 
CHIPS Act: Reviewing the Bill

Understanding the details of the bill is crucial to prioritizing the available funding. Where should this money go? In this session, participants will take a closer look at the CHIPS Act semiconductor related language with the goal of understanding the intent of this bill. 
 
Speaker: Dr. Michael Fritze  
 

Manufacturing Considerations  

Fabrication is at the heart of the microelectronics industry and this area will receive the largest amount of CHIPS funding. We will take a deep dive into the complex semiconductor fabrication process and develop a strong understanding of its importance and influence.  The goal is a better understanding of how CHIPS funding can impact the semiconductor fabrication capabilities of the US. 
 
Speakers: John Behnke and Brian Shirley

R&D Efforts

R&D will receive the second largest amount of CHIPS funding, at $24 billion. This will take the form of creating a National Semiconductor Technology Center (NSTC), Advanced Packaging Manufacturing Program (APMP), and a Manufacturing USA Institute focused on semiconductors. This course will focus on the structure of successful public-private consortia as we consider what we can learn from past experiences and current public-private consortia to inform the formation of the NSTC, APMP, and the Manufacturing USA Institute.  

Speaker: Dr. Paolo Gargini

How to Ensure CHIPS Will Deliver the Final Punch

We have the funding, now what?  This session will address the economic and financial issues of the CHIPS Act. How can we turn the available $50 billion into enough money to really address the issue of strong domestic semiconductor capabilities? What is the path to achieve a total $200 billion investment, which is what is really needed to address this issue?
 
Speaker: Ardavan Mobasheri

Implementation Challenges: Acquisitions and How to Effectively Push the Money Out 

The CHIPS Act provides a unique opportunity to change the course of the U.S. decline in microelectronic production and thereby provide more reliable and secure microelectronics parts. Now that the funds have been appropriated, how they are implemented by the USG could either enhance or squander this rare opportunity. This course will look at the various methods the USG can use to move funds. Topics will include grants versus specific contract mechanisms, the advantages and pitfalls of each, and the potential use of the Defense Production Act authorities. Participants will also explore potential guardrails to help discourage poor spending by awardees. 
 
Speaker: Ted Glum

Interactive Event: How Would YOU Prioritize the Money?

Culminating the knowledge learned, participants will engage in an interactive, multi-faceted discussion with each other on how they would prioritize CHIPS execution and spending. They will consider what specific types of investment priorities would have the most impact on US microelectronics capabilities. Several small groups will be formed to engage in discussions. These groups will be assigned an expert coach to give a unique perspective from real-life experiences and act as a sounding board for the groups before their presentations. 
 
Speakers: Jennifer Santos and Hon. John Young

Business Aspects and Workforce

The CHIPS investments will fail if there is insufficient workforce to execute the desired goals. This course will explore how we can incentivize the skills required for CHIPS in the U.S. workforce. In this session, we will consider the challenges posed by the limited trained workers, and the need for more in this field. We will also discuss ways to gain more interest while exploring options to increase the workforce. 
 
Speaker: TBD